For the 50th World Communications Day, Pope Francis issued a message titled Communication and Mercy: A Fruitful Encounter. He explains that: “The digital world is a public square, a meeting-place where we can either encourage or demean one another, engage in a meaningful discussion or unfair attacks… It is not technology which determines whether or […]
“Jesus is passing by. How often have I marveled at this simple way of describing divine mercy! Jesus is headed somewhere, yet he is not too busy to spot human suffering.” St. Josemaria Escriva Christ is Passing By, no. 67 As a seminarian in Rome during the last ordinary Jubilee I remember browsing one afternoon […]
Traditionally a celebration of the consecrated life, the Feast of the Lord’s Presentation forms an especially meaningful moment in the Year of Consecrated Life proclaimed by the Holy Father (November 2014-February 2016). Pope Francis has invited religious and laity alike to cultivate a deep gratitude for a state of life which uniquely displays the work […]
St. Josemaria Escriva was deeply devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary throughout his entire life. His writings and his interior life are equally marked by this devotion; so too is Opus Dei, which, under God’s providence, he founded on October 2, 1928 as a path to holiness in ordinary life. The founder of Opus Dei […]
We have very sadly gotten almost accustomed to saying God’s name in vain or hearing others do so. There is little reverence in the way people dress and behave at church. There is a loss of the sense of the sacred and of the reverence due to God.
For us Christians the fleetingness of our journey through life should be a spur to help us make better use of our time. It should never be a motive for fearing Our Lord, and much less for looking upon death as a disastrous and final end. Cf. Friends of God, no. 39 The Gospel for […]
In the sermon The Praise of Men, [1] after indicating that ridicule is a powerful weapon used by the devil, Blessed John Henry Newman describes a case in which it is the cause of much pain: when a person who had shunned religion turns by God’s grace back to the practice of religion and meets […]
The Saints are men and women whom the Church sets as standards for living holy lives as children of God. Today is the memorial or feast day of Blessed John Henry Newman (1801-1890), a renowned Anglican convert and Catholic priest who stands out for his intellectual accomplishments lived with humility and charity. In “The Praise […]
Junipero Serra, a Spanish Franciscan and founder of nine of the twenty-one California missions in the 18th century, was declared a saint by Pope Francis at a solemn Mass at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D. C. The canonization of Junipero Serra is a call to personal holiness and evangelization. The saints […]
“Love Jesus with all the strength of all the hearts of all those who have loved him most. Be daring: tell him you are carried away with more love than Mary Magdalene, more than Teresa and little Therese, more carried away than Augustine and Dominic and Francis, more than Ignatius and Xavier.” St. Josemaria Escriva […]
By The MacDonald Family My family and I were all received into the Catholic Church during this past Easter Vigil, so the celebration of St Josemaria is especially poignant for us this year. My husband was baptized Catholic, but had never received any of the other sacraments. Though we attended various churches over the years, […]
By The Amador Family St. Josemaria has provided me with the guidance and insight to better understand how I can become a better person on a daily basis. I am able to improve my attitude and maintain solid inner peace through meditating on his writings and constantly reminding me of my call to holiness. This […]
By The McDonald Family Greetings, My wife and I just received our paper copy of your novena for married and engaged couples. We are grateful to have this beautiful devotion on hand for our future together, as we can attest to it’s efficacy. My wife and I were married on June 21, 2013, and we […]
By J.R. of Independence, KY The story of my friendship with St. Josemaria is most certainly multi-layered and very detailed, however, I will attempt to tell a part of it as succinctly as possible. I could tell many stories of favors I have received because of his prayers on behalf of myself and my family. […]
By The Paschall Family St. Josemaria Escriva has been an inspiration in our marriage and family. We learned about Opus Dei when we were newly married and before we had children. St. Josemaria’s writings have helped us learn how to love, forgive, persevere and be compassionate at all times. With the plan of life that […]
By Friends of the St. Josemaria Institute “St. Josemaria has done so much for us that it’s hard to put it in a few words. He has taught us to give more care to the neediest family member and that having a special needs child is a sign of God’s trust. Also to overlook the […]
Cody is an award-winning sculptor who has completed commissions for private and public spaces around the world, including the United States, Italy, and Slovenia. His hope as a sculptor is that “the fruit of his labor will give glory to God and reflect His truth into the hearts of many.” To learn more about Cody […]
I was deeply moved by the Epistle in today’s Mass, and I imagine the same will have happened to you. I realized that God was helping us, through the words of the Apostle, to contemplate the divine interlacing of the three theological virtues which form the backing upon which the true life of every Christian […]
Our Christian vocation, this calling which Our Lord makes to each of us personally, leads us to become identified with him. But we should not forget that he came on earth to redeem everyone, because ‘he wishes all men to be saved’. There is not a single soul in whom Christ is not interested. Each […]
Let us consider for a moment the texts of today’s Mass, Tuesday in Passion Week, for they will help us to distinguish ‘true godliness’ from ‘false godliness’. We shall be speaking about humility, for this is the virtue which helps us to recognise, at one and the same time, both our wretchedness and our greatness. […]
